1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for aligning articles or rows of articles which are supplied irregularly on a conveyor belt from a conditioning line or the like, to or from a workstation, for example. This apparatus includes at least one detector for detecting the passage of the line or row of articles; at least one alignment element; and an activation device for the alignment element.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
Articles or rows of articles such as, for example, bars of chocolate or other products, food products or otherwise, manufactured by production machines such as, for example, molding devices, coating devices, extruders, cooling ovens, etc., are generally transported towards workstations on conveyor belts, ribbons, or other types of conveyors. During production, for example by means of one of the aforementioned machines, or in the course of transport, these products can undergo disturbances which misalign them or cause their path on the conveyor to be irregular. The proper operation of a packaging machine, e.g., requires a regular supply of products which must be properly arranged and aligned. In other words, it is indispensable that the products of each row be aligned and the rows to be properly spaced.
Numerous alignment and arrangement techniques have previously been proposed. For rates of up to 100 rows per minute the products can be retained by stopping them momentarily by means of abutments while the conveyor continues to move. Another technique currently utilized consists of positioning the products on a chain drive with protruding pins which brings the products to abut against the pins mounted on the chain at equal distances from one another. These relatively complicated mechanisms do not lend themselves to the treatment of all types of products and cannot be utilized for increased rates of speed on the order of 200-250 rows per minute.
Products manufactured at these increased rates must necessarily be taken up by the conditioning line at least at the same rate to ensure manufacturing efficiency to avoid stopping the production machines during the course of production.
It is thus imperative to have technical apparatus available for aligning the products and which is reliable at increased rates of speed and is adapted to be utilized for relatively delicate and fragile products.
The present invention is intended to overcome the weaknesses of known systems and to find a solution to the problems of alignment of the products or the rows of products on conveyor.